The bottom drawer in my bedside table holds an eclectic assortment of items: my blood pressure monitor, a wrist brace, neck brace and a couple stretchy exercise bands, among other things. In the long run, there was little reason for me to even look in that drawer unless I was having a problem.

This week I was having a problem of my own making. I was attempting to watch four football games over the weekend and that added up to a painfully stiff neck. Time to dig out the neck brace. I opened the drawer and gasped. Hundreds if not thousands of dried up weevil husks littered the drawer. With much shuddering I picked up each item and shook off the debris. Thankfully I didn’t see a sign of anything still living but so far I noticed no reason for the infestation.

Then I got to the bottom of the drawer and discovered the problem: a home-made microwavable heat pack. We all have them: filled with wheat, beans, corn or rice, like mine. It had often brought comfort to a stiff neck or shoulder but It wasn’t bringing comfort to me now.

A few things I would have preferred to keep, I tossed into the garbage, tied up the bags and heaved them immediately down the garbage chute in my building. I vacuumed until not one trace of a weevil was left in the drawer, under the drawer, in the drawer above or on the floor around the area. Since my vacuum is the bag-less I washed out the container and put the filter in the bathroom sink to soak overnight, maybe even for a week or two. Wow! Did I ever learn a lesson from that experience.

Then I began to see a spiritual application in this. Psalm 19:12 says: How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart? I’m sure there are sins that I intended to deal with and forgot. Is there is someone who I try to avoid? What sin in my heart is providing fodder for that ‘weevil’? On the sermon on the mount Jesus said: If you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Matt. 5:23. But in Col. 3:13 we are told “forgive anyone who offends you”. so no matter who is to blame for the tension, I am the one who needs to make it right. I shudder to think that finding weevils in a drawer is more horrifying to me than harbouring sin in my heart. The second part of Psalm 19:12 says, Cleanse me from these hidden faults.

Psalm 19:14. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.